Great Conversations – Robert Lukins
Today’s Great Conversation is with debut Australian author Robert Lukins. Andrew Pople talks with Robert about his debut novel The Everlasting Sunday. Together they discuss literary influences, crafting character and a surprising nod to Ridley Scott’s Alien.
The Everlasting Sunday describes the arrival of seventeen year-old Radford at Goodwin Manor. It is the English winter of 1962, a cold snap so severe that it will come to be known as ‘The Big Freeze’. Snow blankets the country and the Manor is cut off from the world. Radford is immediately suspicious of his new home and companions and vows to remain aloof. Goodwin Manor is a home for boys ‘found by trouble’. There is a saying that it only takes two things to get to the Manor; a reason, and a final straw. As the cold lengthens and days cut off from the world stir boredom, the mood in the house shifts. A Doctor Cass has arrived to inspect the unconventional arrangements and everyone is on edge…
The Everlasting Sunday is a gem of a debut. It hits the right notes of warmth and tension to engage and keep a reader and rewards with its insightful characterisations. Definitely for fans of Kazuo Ishiguro, and anyone watching the socials with envy at their friends portraits of England covered in snow.
The Everlasting Sunday is out now from University of Queensland Press
Final Draft is produced and presented by Andrew Pople
Want more Great Conversations? Go to 2ser.com/tag/great-conversation
